The forecast originally predicted rain for Sunday afternoon. Consequently, I had planned on doing my long run Sunday morning. When I checked the forecast again Saturday morning, the predicted rain was moved to early Sunday. I will normally run in the rain, but I wanted my long run to be on a soft surface. The previous week I had run over 21 miles on asphalt, so I needed to alternate with a soft surface this week.
With rain forecast, trail running would not be an option on Sunday due to mud. Saturday morning I made the decision to do my long run out at the Lost Creek Reservoir State Trailway at Fort Richardson State Park in Jacksboro, TX. The last minute decision worked out well because I wanted to do a fun, sightseeing long run. I had been closely following my training plan and working hard all season. Today was my reward: A slow, fun long run where I had time to take photos.
I packed up my pocket camera and headed out to Fort Richardson State Park. I was hoping the trail would be as groomed as out at the Mineral Wells State Trailway. I was not disappointed! It was very well groomed with over 95% being either packed dirt or very finely crushed stone. I really didn't know what to expect because the route was not on MapMyRun or Garmin Connect. I discovered it while I was on the Texas Parks and Wildlife web site. They have a page that lists bicycle trails along with length and difficulty of the trail. Normally if it's a level 1-2, I find it to be a groomed trail suited for a roadrunner like myself.
As well as having historical significance, the trail is very scenic because most of it borders Lake Jacksboro. Similar to the Mineral Wells Trailway, it had some long gradual hills, but it also had some steep hills with great views. Part of the trailway runs along a dam at the end of the lake. Grazing cattle and green pastures are on one side of the dam and the lake is on the other.
My Garmin GPS showed the entire trail length to be about 7.5 miles. However, there is a circular on-road portion at the end that adds another 1.5 miles for a total of 9 miles. That part goes by a beach area with covered picnic tables. Consequently, you can get in a 16.5 to 18 mile run on the trailway by doing an "out and back" route.
Because this was a last minute decision and it was a 1.5 hour drive, I did not arrive at the Trailway and start running until 11 AM. Not used to running so late in the day, I made two mistakes: (1) I didn't wear sunscreen; (2) I only brought 3 bottles in my 4 bottle Fuel Belt. I ran out of water about 4 miles from the end of the run and my arms/shoulders were beet red from sunburn.
But it was still a great day! I found a wonderful new place to run, mountain bike, and swim.
In spite of numerous campers and historical site visitors, I only saw two other people on the trail. And that wasn't until I had almost completed my run. When I was about 2 miles from the trailhead, I passed a gentleman and his son on their mountain bikes going in the opposite direction. Other than two fishing boats on the lake, someone feeding cattle on the opposite side of the dam, and a fly fisherman, I didn't see anyone else. I'm thinking the trail will be busier in the early mornings and in the summer months.
I'm surprised more people don't visit these little pieces of paradise. There are 4 really nice state parks not too far from DFW. Three of them have groomed fairly long trailways perfect for running or non-technical mountain biking. I love our State Parks!